In February 1999, the North Carolina State Board of Community Colleges adopted 12 performance measures for accountability. This action was taken in response to a mandate from the North Carolina General Assembly to ensure programs and services offered by community colleges in North Carolina were of sufficient quality. In addition, the General Assembly authorized the North Carolina Community College System to implement performance funding based on a subset of those 12 measures.

In 2007-2008, the 12 performance standards were replaced with 8 performance standards. In 2010, President Scott Ralls established a Performance Measures Committee to develop new performance-based student success measures to go into effect in 2013. After a year of researching, drafting, and soliciting feedback from college faculty and staff on potential measures, the Committee formally presented 8 measures to the State Board. In November 2011, the State Board formally approved the Performance Measures. These measures were then submitted to the General Assembly in March 2012 and later adopted in June 2012 through Section 8.5 of S.L. 2012-142.

In May 2012, President Ralls appointed a team of college presidents to a Performance Funding Committee to develop a performance funding model. One of the outcomes of this committee was the establishment of system-wide “baselines” and “goals” for each measure. The committee recommended using consistent, statistically-defined baselines and goals to promote transparency, simplicity, and objectivity. This utilization of baselines and goals is a departure from the System’s historical use of “standards”. Based on three years of historical data (if available) for each measure, baselines were set two standard deviations below the system mean, and the goals were set one standard deviation above the system mean. These baselines and goals remain static for three years.

Descriptions of the 2014 measures:

A. Basic Skills Student Progress (Goal: 51.2% - Baseline: 20.6%)

Percentage of students who progress as defined by an educational functioning level.

B. GED Diploma Passing Rate (Goal: 82.0% - Baseline: 49.3%)

Percentage of students taking at least one GED test during a program year who receive a GED diploma during the program year.

Percentage of previous developmental math students who successfully complete a credit math course with a “C” or better upon the first attempt.

E. First Year Progression (Goal: 74.6% - Baseline: 53.2%)

Percentage of first‐time fall credential‐seeking students attempting at least twelve hours within their first academic year who successfully complete (“P”, “C” or better) at least twelve of those hours.

F. Curriculum Student Completion (Goal: 45.6% - Baseline: 28.6%)

Percentage of first‐time fall credential‐seeking students who graduate, transfer, or are still enrolled with 36 hours after six years.

Aggregate institutional passing rate of first time test‐takers on licensure and certification exams. Exams included in this measure are state mandated exams which candidates must pass before becoming active practitioners.

H. College Transfer Performance (Goal: 93.8% - Baseline: 71.2%)

Among community college associate degree completers and those who have completed 30 or more credit hours who transfer to a four‐year university or college, the percentage who earn a GPA of 2.00 or better after two consecutive semesters within the academic year at the transfer institution.